Afghanistan: Helmand Province

The Earl of Sandwich: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How many development advisers have now been placed in the United Kingdom-led provincial reconstruction team (PRT) in Helmand province; and how many in other PRTs and the International Security Assistance Force as a whole.

Lord Drayson: The UK-led provincial reconstruction team in Lashkar Gah, Helmand province, includes a development adviser provided by the Department for International Development and UK-funded advisers working in the fields of governance, police reform, and justice/rule of law. In addition, the PRT includes civilian personnel from Denmark and Estonia, and USAID, US Department for Agriculture and US State Department officials.
	Additionally, the Department for International Development provides a development adviser to the headquarters of the International Security Assistance Force and is planning to deploy another to a multi-donor mission in Badakhshan.
	This integrated civilian-military approach is mirrored in other ISAF and coalition PRTs in Afghanistan, although the precise composition will vary in each case.

Biodiversity: European Marine Strategy

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What representations they have made to European Union member states regarding the European Marine Strategy and proposed accompanying directive; what was the nature of those representations; and whether they will make any correspondence on this issue available to the public.

Lord Rooker: The marine strategy and proposed directive are being negotiated in Environment Council Working Party meetings1. While welcoming action to better protect Europe's seas, the UK has expressed concerns that the directive, as drafted, risks excessive cost and bureaucracy for little added protection for Europe's marine environment. My department has undertaken a consultation exercise on the proposed marine strategy directive and will publish its response shortly.
	1 The UK has made its views clear to EU25 in the Environment Council Working Party meetings.

Bosnia-Herzegovina: Diplomatic Representation

Lord Astor of Hever: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What plans there are for setting up an Office of the European Union Special Representative in Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Lord Triesman: The Office of the EU Special Representative was established in 2002, when the noble Lord, Lord Ashdown, arrived in Bosnia-Herzegovina and "double-hatted" as both the international community's High Representative and the first EU Special Representative.

Cancer: Financial Assistance for Patients

Lord Morris of Manchester: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What consideration they are giving to the findings and recommendations of Macmillan Cancer Support's report Cancer Costs for cancer patients to be exempt from hospital car-parking charges and for an urgent review of the financial assistance available to them; and what action they will be taking.

Lord Warner: The Government value their strong and constructive relationship with Macmillan Cancer Support and will of course consider the recommendations in its report Cancer Costs—The Hidden Price of Getting Treatment.
	However, financial assistance is already available to patients through the hospital travel costs scheme and the National Health Service low-income scheme.
	Under the Department of Health's income- generation rules, NHS trusts are allowed to charge for car parking and are advised to assess the needs of all users of the hospital, including patients, visitors, staff, emergency vehicles and others, when operating car-parking schemes. Trusts are allowed to charge because the provision of car-parking facilities incurs a range of maintenance, security and staffing costs. If no charges were made, trusts would have to find these costs from elsewhere. Each trust is responsible for setting its own charges, but any profits must be used to improve health services.

Coca Production: Aerial Spraying

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What discussions they have had with the Governments of Colombia and Ecuador about the environmental and health effects on the rural population of the aerial spraying of herbicides on coca fields; and
	What research they have commissioned on the effectiveness of aerial spraying as a method of reducing the volume of coca produced; and whether they have had discussions with other Governments about alternative methods.

Lord Triesman: The UK provided £200,000 in 2003-04 to the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) to co-fund an independent internal survey aimed at assessingthe environmental and human health effects of using glyphosate to eradicate coca crops in Colombia. The survey's findings were published in April 2005 and can be found at www.cicad.oas.org/Desarrollo_ Alternativo/ENG/Projects%20By%20Country/Colombia/OAS% 20Panel%20Report%20Final.pdf.
	The UK is committed to assisting Governments in Latin America to tackle the production of and trade in illicit drugs. As such, we have regular discussions with all Governments in the region, including Colombia and Ecuador, and with other international partners about strategies for countering the activities of those involved in the illicit drugs trade. As part of that assistance, we have contributed £100,000 to the development of an alternative livelihood programme in Bolivia. The UK does not assist with aerial spraying and it has not therefore been necessary to discuss the environmental and health effects of aerial spraying with any Government in the region. We none the less recognise the right of the Colombian authorities to take whatever steps they deem necessary, as part of a wide range of activities, to counter the production of illicit drugs.

Common Agricultural Policy: Single Farm Payment

Baroness Byford: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	With reference to the single farm payments scheme, how many farmers (a) have not yet received any money; (b) have not yet received their full entitlement; (c) have been paid in full; (d) have not been paid in full, but had a historical payment record from 2004; and (e) have applied for a payment that is below €100.

Lord Rooker: As of 27 June 2006 and based upon a working estimate of 120,000 SPS 2005 applications:
	Farmers who have not yet received a full or partial payment: 12,955 Farmers who have not received a full payment: 29,787Farmers who have been paid in full: 90,213Farmers with 2004 reference data who have not been paid in full: 23,482 Farmers who have applied for a payment below €100: 12,912

Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000: Coastal Access

Baroness Byford: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether the investigative phase of the preparation for a Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs consultation on further access to the United Kingdom coastline has covered any of the issues encountered in the roll-out of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000; if so, what aspects have been examined and what incidence statistics compiled.

Lord Rooker: Both Defra and the Countryside Agency have undertaken a review of their respective responsibilities for the implementation of the new right of access to open country and registered common land under Part 1 of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000. The findings of the two reviews are being taken into account in developing the work on possible options to improve access to the English coast.

Crime: Rape

Baroness Gould of Potternewton: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What role strategic health authorities and primary care trusts have in the follow-up treatment and care for victims of rape; and what training is given to doctors who have responsibility for the forensic examination in pelvic anatomy on how to approach this aspect of medical care.

Lord Warner: Neither strategic health authorities (SHAs) nor primary care trusts (PCTs) have any direct responsibility for the follow-up treatment and care of victims of rape.
	The role of PCTs is to commission services based on local assessments of need. It is their role to commission a comprehensive and equitable range of high-quality, responsive and efficient services, within allocated resources. PCTs operate within the framework of Department of Health policy; they are held to account for this by SHAs, not directly by the department.
	The role of SHAs is to ensure that local systems operate effectively and deliver improved performance, by working in partnership with PCTs and holding them to account for their performance.
	However, a number of initiatives are taking place across Government to develop policy and improve practice for victims of rape and sexual assault. One of these is the national sexual violence and abuse stakeholder advisory group, chaired by Home Office Minister Mr Vernon Coaker and Department of Health Minister Ms Caroline Flint. In addition, a national sexual violence and abuse action plan is being developed by the Home Office with the Department of Health and other government departments.
	The Department of Health has also been working closely with the Home Office to develop sexual assault referral centres (SARCs), and national service guidelines for developing sexual assault referral centres were published in October 2005. In addition, since 2003, £1.27 million from the Home Office Victims Fund has been spent on new and existing SARCs. SARCs operate in 14 locations in England and Wales, and six more are due to open in the forthcoming year.
	The Victims of Violence and Abuse Prevention Programme, run jointly by the Department of Health and the National Institute for Mental Health in England, is working in partnership with the Home Office to develop national service guidelines.
	There are no national standards for training of doctors providing medical examinations and aftercare following sexual assault. There is currently no United Kingdom qualification in sexual assault examination and aftercare.
	The content and standard of postgraduate medical training is the responsibility of the Postgraduate Medical Education and Training Board, and the General Medical Council's education committee has the general function of promoting high standards of medical education. Both bodies have a vested interest in ensuring that doctors are equipped to deal with the problems they will encounter in practice, including forensic examination of victims of rape. It is not, however, practicable or desirable for the Government to prescribe the exact training that any individual doctor will receive.
	However, courses are available for training doctors and nurses to carry out examinations following sexual assault; for example, those run by the London Havens and by St Mary's Hospital, Manchester. To become competent in this area of work, new doctors working in the London Havens:
	attend a two-day adult rape course;attend a two-day child sexual assault course;attend a one-day court training course;attend subsequent updates;shadow examinations conducted by experienced doctors; conduct their first few examinations under supervision, and have their statements checked by an experienced colleague.

Energy: Efficiency

Baroness Thomas of Winchester: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What advice they make available to householders who wish to reduce the energy consumption in their homes; and how they propose to make this advice more accessible.

Lord Rooker: My department has funded the Energy Saving Trust since 1992, to promote the sustainable and efficient use of energy in the household sector. Our grant for the current financial year is £27 million. The trust is an independent, private company that plays an important role in helping the Government to meet their climate change targets. The trust runs programmes to promote energy saving in the home, including television advertisements, a network of 52 local advice centres and the endorsement of energy-saving products. The trust also provides information about grants and offers that are available to help implement energy-saving measures in homes. More information is available from the Energy Saving Trust website at www.est.org.uk/myhome/.
	We need to raise levels of public understanding and change attitudes to climate change as a central part of the wider climate change programme. This is the focus for our climate change communication initiative, which was launched in December last year.
	Defra has made funding of £12 million available for the whole initiative and, so far, £4.8 million has been allocated to 53 Climate Challenge Fund projects. These projects, from across England, will form part of an innovative new approach aimed at raising awareness at regional and local level of the urgent need to tackle climate change.
	Under the climate change communications initiative the Government are providing additional support, including guidance for communicators, a website (www.climatechallenge.gov.uk), and free-to-use resources such as short film and radio advertisements.
	As a further element of the initiative, earlier this year we ran a competition to choose nine young climate change champions, each from a different region of England. The winners, who were chosen in May, will spend a year spreading the word to their region about climate change and the role that young people can have in tackling it.

Government Departments: Special Advisers

Baroness Wilcox: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether the change between the draft and final new Civil Service Code whereby the expectation on special advisers to abide by the code has been removed means that such civil servants are, apart from political impartiality, not now required to demonstrate the same standards of integrity, honesty, objectivity and impartiality as other civil servants.

Lord Bassam of Brighton: The new Civil Service Code, published on Tuesday 6 June, makes no change to the duties and responsibilities of special advisers, which remain as set out in the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers.

Government Departments: Special Advisers

Lord Lester of Herne Hill: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Bassam of Brighton on 28 June (WA 161), whether and, if so, by what means it is possible for parliamentarians and the public to obtain information regarding (a) the number of assistants currently employed as special advisers to Ministers; (b) the government departments in which they are employed; and (c) the nature of their services.

Lord Bassam of Brighton: As set out in my Answer of Wednesday 28 June (Official Report, col. WA 161) the information requested is not held centrally. It is a matter for individual departments to determine the level of support to be provided to special advisers. The Government publish on an annual basis the names and overall cost of special advisers and the number in each pay band. Information for this financial year will be published shortly.

Gulf War: Pensions

Lord Morris of Manchester: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What information they have on the numbers and identities of veterans of the 1990-91 Gulf War who made war pension claims for Gulf War syndrome before October 2005.

Lord Drayson: At the end of September 2005, some 2,920 ex-service men who served in the first Gulf conflict were in receipt of a war disablement pension. Accurate information on the number and identities of veterans who claimed Gulf War syndrome could be obtained only by detailed examination of individual cases.

Head Lice

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What methods of head lice control in children, other than combing, are recommended by the Department of Health.

Lord Warner: The Department of Health has provided a leaflet containing guidance on the prevention and treatment of head lice, which includes the option of using lotions as well as combing. The leaflet is available in the Library and on the department's website at www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/11/63/47/04116347.pdf.

House of Lords: Appointments Commission

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Bassam of Brighton on 21 June (WA 88) concerning the House of Lords Appointments Commission, what is the annual breakdown of expenses incurred by the commission.

Lord Bassam of Brighton: The costs of the House of Lords Appointments Commission will be accounted for in the commission's annual report, which will be published shortly.

House of Lords: Queen's Room

Lord Trefgarne: asked the Chairman of Committees:
	Whether he will arrange for a clock to be installed in the Queen's Room of the Library of the House.

Lord Brabazon of Tara: This is a helpful suggestion. A clock is now on order.

Iraq and Afghanistan: Insurgent Activities

Lord Dykes: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What is their response to the recent increase in insurgent activities against uniformed membersof coalition units in both Iraq and Afghanistan.

Lord Drayson: We continuously monitor and assess the threat posed to our troops by insurgent activity in Afghanistan and Iraq, and this forms an integral part of our military planning. While it would not be appropriate to comment in detail on our assessment of, or response to, threats posed to our troops, the Government will ensure commanders have an appropriately robust force with which to conduct operations, equipped with a range of support equipment. Tactics, techniques and procedures appropriate for the operational task and environment are also in place and are adjusted as required.

Israel and Palestine: Detention

Lord Dykes: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What recent discussions they have had with the Government of Israel regarding their detention of over 7,000 Palestinians, many of them detained for lengthy periods without trial.

Lord Triesman: Administrative detainees are held in both Israeli Defence Force (IDF) and Israel Prisons Service (IPS) facilities. According to figures provided by the IDF to Israeli non-governmental organisations, the IDF was holding, as of 3 January 2006, 741 Palestinians in administrative detention. The IPS told our embassy in Tel Aviv that, as of May 2006, 617 administrative detainees were being held in IPS facilities.
	According to the IPS, 6,223 security prisoners (those convicted by Israeli courts of terrorism-related crimes) were being held in IPS facilities in May 2006. A further 1,656 were being held awaiting trial. According to the IPS, security detainees are allowed family visits and are given medical and dental care. The International Committee of the Red Cross regularly visits IPS facilities and makes recommendations on conditions inside Israeli prisons to the Israeli authorities.
	We remain concerned by Israel's policy of administrative detention, particularly that of minors. We regularly raise our concerns with the IPS. We last raised the issue of Palestinian prisoners with the Israeli Ministry for Foreign Affairs on 15 June, and our ambassador in Tel Aviv last raised this with Israeli Prime Minister Olmert's special adviser on 22 March.

Israel and Palestine: Military Hostage

Lord Dykes: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What representations they have made to the Government of Israel regarding their military response to the kidnapping of one Israel Defence Force soldier.

Lord Triesman: My right honourable friend the Foreign Secretary discussed the current situation in Gaza with Foreign Minister Livni on 25 June and we are in regular contact with the Israeli Government. Any military steps taken should avoid civilian casualties, abide by international law and observe the principle of proportionality.
	We call for the immediate and unconditional release of Corporal Shalit. As my right honourable friend the Foreign Secretary said on 25 June:
	"I was very disturbed to learn of this serious terrorist attack at Sufa. I send my condolences to the families of those Israeli soldiers who have died. Such continued violence makes the prospect of a negotiated, peaceful resolution more distant".

Israel and Palestine: Military Hostage

Lord Dykes: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether, as quartet participants, they have had discussions with the Government of the United States on the Government of Israel's decision not to follow the request to use diplomatic channels to resolve the latest military hostage crisis.

Lord Triesman: At the G8 Foreign Ministers meeting in Moscow on 29 June, my right honourable friend the Foreign Secretary discussed the current situation in Gaza with her US counterpart. The UK is indirectly a member of the quartet (EU, US, UN and Russia) and all quartet members have individually urged Israel to act with restraint. Our ambassador in Tel Aviv and consul general in Jerusalem stay in regular contact with their US counterparts.

Mental Health: Stress

Baroness Howells of St Davids: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What steps they intend to take to implement the seven-year plan aimed at increasing the number of counsellors available to support individuals who suffer from stress, as recommended in the report by the London School of Economics mental health group, The Depression Report: A New Deal for Depression and Anxiety Disorders.

Lord Warner: We agree that stepped improvements in access to evidence-based psychological therapies should be available. Our programme, Increasing Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT), which we announced in May, is a key part of the Government's mental health programme to address this. The IAPT programme will define the best way to achieve these improvements over the next five to 10 years.
	We have recently set up psychological therapy demonstration sites in Doncaster and Newham, to help test the extent to which increasing access to these therapies improves well-being, reduces worklessness and the number of people claiming incapacity benefit, and provides greater choices in treatment and core options for people with these conditions. The demonstration sites will help to clarify the number of staff, the skills set and the training needed to improve access to psychological therapies.
	Evidence from the demonstration sites will be supplemented by a national network of smaller, local IAPT projects and 20 national primary care mental health collaborative sites.

MMR Vaccine

The Countess of Mar: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What is the unit cost of a single dose of measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine; and what are the unit costs of each of the MMR vaccine constituents if given as separate doses.

Lord Warner: The Department of Health purchases supplies of the combined measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine but the price is commercially confidential. The department does not purchase supplies of single MMR vaccine, and does not hold information on the cost of these products.

NHS: Audiology

Baroness Howe of Idlicote: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What discussions have taken place between the Department of Health and the British Academy of Audiology regarding the exclusion of direct audiology referrals from the 18-week waiting times target set out in Tackling hospital waiting: the 18 week patient pathway.

Lord Warner: The Department of Health conducted a six-week listening exercise in autumn 2005 on Commissioning an 18 week patient pathway: proposed principles and definitions—a discussion document. We sought comments from the National Health Service, patient groups and professional bodies on a wide range of issues including shorter waiting times for audiology services. A response was received from the British Academy of Audiology.
	Tackling hospital waiting: the 18 week patient pathway—an implementation framework, published in May 2006, makes clear that the 18-week target will focus on hospital pathways. Conditions, including audiological ones, which require referral to a medical consultant will be covered but services accessed directly from primary care will not. The British Academy of Audiology wrote to express concern about directly accessed audiology services. The department has made clear that reducing waiting times for directly accessed audiology services is important and that an action plan is being developed to improve access.

NHS: Dentistry

Lord Colwyn: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What analysis the Dental Business Service has made of items prescribed under band 3 of the new dental contract since 1 April.

Lord Warner: The Business Services Authority dental practice division provides primary care trusts with monthly returns on activity. Once sufficient treatments have been completed we will be able to assess activity. However, it will be some months before this is the case, particularly in the case of the more complex band 3 treatments.

NHS: General Medical Services Framework

Earl Howe: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Warner on 6 March (WA 115), when the negotiations between NHS employers and the British Medical Association's General Practitioners Committee for the general medical services contract for 2007—08 onwards will commence; and whether, as in the case of the general medical services contract for 2006—07, there will be an opportunity for other stakeholders to submit suggestions for the quality and outcomes framework of the contract.

Lord Warner: NHS employers who managed the negotiations with the British Medical Association on behalf of the Department of Health are in the process of appointing an expert panel to inform negotiations. The result of the selection process for the independent panel will be announced soon, along with details of how the public and other interested groups can participate in the process in future years. Discussion with the BMA on the general medical services contract has been ongoing since summer 2005.

NHS: General Medical Services Framework

Earl Howe: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Warner on 6 March (WA 115), what evidence they plan to collect in order to assess the benefits to patients of the inclusion in the general medical services contract of eight points for identifying and recording obesity.

Lord Warner: The quality and outcomes framework for 2006-07 includes an indicator which rewards practices for maintaining an obesity register. The recording of body mass index for the register will take place in the practice as part of routine care. It is expected that this data will inform public health measures.

NHS: School Nurses

Baroness Tonge: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What progress they have made towards their target that by 2010 every primary care trust will have appointed the full complement of school nurses for its area.

Lord Warner: The September 2005 workforce census showed that there were 2,887 (1,913 full-time equivalent) qualified nurses working in the school nursing service in England, an increase of 478 (19.8 per cent) since 2004. Of these, 943 (665 full-time equivalent) have a post-registration school nursing qualification, an increase of 87 (10 per cent) since 2004.
	The Department of Health, along with the Department for Education and Skills, is continuing to ensure that the profile of school nurses remains high nationally. In partnership, the departments have published Looking for a school nurse? and a school nurse practice development resource pack, which will support the expansion and development of the school nursing service.
	Ministers and the Chief Nursing Officer continue to communicate the importance of school nurses to the National Health Service, and work with professional bodies to promote their modern role. Managers will need to develop their workforce to support their local school nursing services in ways best suited to the needs of their community.

Official Travel: Carbon Emission Offsets

Lord Hanningfield: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	On how many occasions the Prime Minister and officials from No. 10 Downing Street have used the scheme that enables government departments to offset the carbon impacts of their air travel; and what was (a) the purpose; (b) the destination; and (c) the cost on each occasion.

Lord Bassam of Brighton: The Prime Minister's Office is part of the Cabinet Office. The Cabinet Office is fully committed to the carbon offsetting of government air travel initiative and is participating in the Government Carbon Offsetting Fund (GCOF). The GCOF aims to fulfil the Prime Minister's commitment to carbon offset all official air travel in central government and will be available for all central government departments to offset emissions from official air travel in a simple and cost-effective manner, as well as ensuring high environmental integrity.
	Flights by the Prime Minister have been offset since 1 April 2005.

Organ Donation

Baroness Finlay of Llandaff: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they will take steps to reverse the trend of families refusing consent for organ donation, particularly in circumstances where the individuals concerned carried a donor card or had expressly indicated that they wanted to donate their organs; and
	Whether any progress is being made towards an opt-out scheme for organ donation instead of an opt-in scheme; and
	What steps they are taking to increase organ donation rates.

Lord Warner: More than 13 million people have registered on the organ donor register (ODR), 23 per cent of the United Kingdom population. The Department of Health gives around £1 million yearly to National Health Service Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) to run the ODR and to promote transplantation. It also provides Section 64 grants to a number of charities to promote donation in particular parts of the community. Specific initiatives include funding through NHSBT to support hospital-based schemes, high profile media initiatives and partnership working with a range of organisations to increase the number of people registered on the ODR and to encourage donation.
	In April 2006, NHS Blood and Transplant published the results of its potential donor audit. It suggested that there may be greater opportunities to identify potential donors in intensive care units; and highlighted the high number of relatives—some 40 per cent—who refuse donation. We have asked officials to bring together a small group of key people to take stock of progress against Saving Lives Valuing Donors—A Transplant Framework for England, published in 2003; to identify current barriers to organ donation; to look at national and international experience; and to identify opportunities to increase donation rates within the current legal and regulatory framework.
	The Human Tissue Act 2004, which is due to come into force on 1 September 2006, sets out the requirement for consent to be obtained to use human organs and tissue whether from the living or after death. It will make clear that relatives have no right of veto over the deceased's wish to donate, which should assist in reducing the current relatives refusal rate. We are not convinced that a policy of "presumed consent" would be effective in increasing the number of organs available for transplantation or that there is overwhelming public support for a "presumed consent" or opt-out scheme. A system of presumed consent would be entirely contrary to principles in the Human Tissue Act.

RAF: Canberra PR9 Aircraft

Lord Hanningfield: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What plans they have for the disposal of the Canberra PR9 aircraft that retired from active Royal Air Force service on 24 June; and whether they intend to provide the necessary support, financial or otherwise, to enable at least one of the aircraft to be kept in an airworthy condition.

Lord Drayson: The out-of-service date for the RAF's three Canberra PR9 aircraft is 31 July 2006. The aircraft are being marketed for sale by the Disposal Services Agency. There are no plans to provide support to any of these aircraft once they have been retired from RAF service.

Rural Communities: Housing

Baroness Byford: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the publication of the Joseph Rowntree report on rural housing, whether they have considered enabling county and rural districts to commission developers to construct affordable housing on council land and then to sell the completed home to first-time buyers with a rural background.

Baroness Andrews: Local authorities already have powers under Section 32 of the Housing Act 1985 to dispose of properties they have had developed with a discount to priority purchasers. They may also dispose of land to registered social landlords for the development of affordable housing.
	Our new HomeBuy scheme will expand the opportunity for home ownership to over 100,000 households by 2010, including through the first-time buyers initiative, which uses public sector land. The shared equity task force has been established to examine further ways to increase the number of people able to benefit from shared equity products and the case for government intervention. As part of its work, the shared equity task force will be evaluating the costs and benefits of different models for delivering affordable housing, including the use of public sector land. The task force is due to report at the end of 2006 to inform the Comprehensive Spending Review decisions in summer 2007.

Rural Communities: Housing

Baroness Byford: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the publication of the Joseph Rowntree report on rural housing, whether they have considered enabling county and rural districts to acquire, from developers and others holding land in rural areas, sites suitable for use for the construction of affordable homes.

Baroness Andrews: There is nothing to prevent local authorities from acquiring sites in rural areas that are suitable for the construction of affordable homes. We are encouraging local authorities to consider innovative uses of land and mixed-community proposals to deliver more affordable housing.
	The rural exception site policy allows local authorities to allocate small sites in and around small rural communities for affordable housing to meet local needs, in locations which may be subject to policies of constraint such as green belts.

Water Supply

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What guidance they have issued under Section 40 of the Water Act 2003 to the Water Industries Authority on social and environmental matters.

Lord Rooker: Guidance to Ofwat on social and environmental matters has not yet been issued. We are preparing draft guidance and expect to start inter-departmental discussions in the autumn.

Water Supply: Consumption

Lord Hanningfield: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What was the total consumption of water in cubic metres, including a breakdown of consumption per occupant, in the headquarters of the Water Services Regulation Authority (Ofwat) in each of the past 10 years.

Lord Rooker: The Water Services Regulation Authority (Ofwat) is a tenant of a building occupied by a number of companies. It is not possible to give separate figures.